OSM Monthly Link Find – March 2012

Welcome to the end of March! Do you know what means? Yes, it means that Spring is on its way. But it also means that it’s time for another rendition of Outspoken’s Monthly Link Find! YEY! This month the team brings you links on productive arguing, info on markup formats, branding and more. So basically it’s kind of impossible to leave here without learning something. It’s our little Friday gift to you.

Oh, and before I send you away – don’t forget to tune into the blog on Monday to catch Michelle’s LinkLove Boston liveblogging. Just because some people hate liveblogging, doesn’t you can’t still enjoy all of Michelle’s hard work from the comfort of your couch.

Daniel’s process for deliberative discourse stems from his agency, anthropology, and theater background (eerily similar to my agency, primatology, and theater background), but everyone should learn from his experiences. Organizations need to brainstorm and often encounter conflict. This is a natural part of group development. The ability to harness deliberative discourse and develop a system for conflict and communication within your organization, ensures long-term success. There’s a greater return for your clients, as well as, a more personally fulfilling environment where “…work requires intensity, thoughtfulness, and rigor.” This post really highlights something that we inherently feel as professionals, but sometimes have difficulty acting on.

There’s no denying the importance of a strong brand and a quality product, but is that enough to differentiate? James Allen argues that the key to differentiation is making improvements to your value chain that seamlessly and flawlessly deliver high quality products and services to your customers.

This isn’t the first time that a disruptive technology is threatening Google, but I find this article particularly fascinating. Perhaps because Danika is a big fan of Siri and I get to hear Siri’s voice on an almost daily basis. Or perhaps because this is the first threat that I can really see being a contender. What do you think…. does Siri really present a threat to the almighty Google?

This infographic from Selena Narayanasamy not only gives you a good intro to rich snippets, it also covers the types of markup formats (like schemas for food bloggers), how to use them, and even how to test them. And if you find content markup intimidating, check out the section on WordPress plugins that do it for you.

If you’re not already using microdata in your content, this will get you on the right track. A lot of people are saying infographics are passé, but this is one you’ll definitely want to bookmark, and maybe even print out and hang next to your desk, especially if you’re a content creator. Besides, who doesn’t love an infographic with a cute dog in it?!

While I don’t need anyone to reaffirm the importance of SEO and ranking well, I do like when I find resources that help do just that. And while there is so much to this branding article that I agree with, from the overall subject itself, the statistics at the end help reaffirm the need for SEO. The statistic goes like this: 50% of sales come from 80% of the people, while the other 50% of sales come from the remaining 20% who seldom think of a brand (if at all, in my opinion). That, to me, speaks volumes for the need, efficacy and ROI possibilities that SEO can bring – driving brands, products and thoughts higher in the search results for the 20% that can account for 50% of sales.

This topic has been written about ad nauseum but it’s never been covered as in-depth and awesome as it is in this Neil Patel post. If you’re a small business owner, if you work with small business owners, or if you just want to know how to absolutely dominate in local search, then this post is your guide. You probably won’t get through it in one read. You may not even get through it in five, but holy hell is there a lot of potential here and Neil breaks it down in amazing detail. Read this one. And when you’re done, read it again.

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